The family of a four-year-old boy who refused donations while their little one twice battled cancer have been left with no other option following a heartbreaking new diagnosis.
Queensland boy Max Robinson was diagnosed with leukemia in March 2021 and underwent several operations, including a bone marrow transplant.
Max’s family was told twice that he had gone into remission, in early 2022 and mid-2023, after blood tests found no cancer in his system.
However, on March 16 they were heartbroken again when a scan found cancer cells in 84 percent of their body. A scan just a month earlier found none.
“The other week I noticed a couple of bruises on him in the pool and took him in for some blood tests,” Max’s mother, Clara Robinson, told WhatsNew2Day Australia.
“Unfortunately, it happened again, so this is his second relapse.”
Queensland toddler Max Robinson (pictured) was diagnosed with leukemia in March 2021, but recently relapsed.
Max and his family (pictured together) now face moving to Singapore for three months for specialist treatment.
They quickly realized that the next treatment available in Australia would not give Max the best chance of beating his cancer, so his parents looked overseas.
“It’s harder to treat (Max’s cancer) now because the cells have mutated slightly,” Mrs Robinson said.
‘They are adapting their genes’or respond less to chemotherapy.
‘The treatment that would be the next phase in Australia is not appropriate for Max as two-thirds of his cancer cells no longer express the gene it targets.
“That’s why we have had to look internationally.”
The family decided on a children’s hospital in Singapore that offers treatment that specifically targets mutated cancer genes.
The program is in high demand and the earliest the family can get a spot for little Max is June.
However, to reserve their spot, the family will have to pay their medical bill upfront: an estimated $280,000.
To make matters worse, the Australian Government will not help the family pay for the treatment because it is considered “experimental”, despite showing positive results for several years.
While they have turned down donations before, the family has asked for help to raise the necessary funds.
A close family friend, Nicola Johnson, started a GoFundMe which has raised more than $162,000 since Thursday.
Clara Robinson explained that Max (pictured meeting the Broncos with his brother) needs treatment to target the mutated cancer cells, which is not available in Australia.
A scan in March found cancer cells in 84 per cent of Max’s body, after a scan just a month earlier found none (pictured, Max and Mrs Robinson in hospital).
‘I need your help to get Max to Singapore! Give him this treatment so he can grow up and look back on this marathon and think, ‘Wow, I did that and so many people supported me to get me there,’ she wrote.
‘The Robinsons are the strongest and most resilient family who, despite everything that has happened to them, have remained optimistic, strong and unwavering in their fight for Max’s life.
‘This is the team, we are going to end this cancer once and for all. Every dollar counts.”
Johnson said he had previously tried to raise money for the family, but they preferred to donate the money to cancer research organizations.
“I raised over $20,000 in 2022 and shaved my head for the Children’s Cancer Institute,” he said.
‘Cara insisted she didn’t want to take people’s money. The money from my shave went to childhood cancer research and that was Cara’s wish.
Ms Robinson explained that while the family would prefer to receive treatment in Singapore as she worked temporarily there before and it is more affordable, they will consider going to treatment centers in the United States if Max’s cancer worsens.
“It wasn’t detected in February and then it was in 84 percent of his cells in March, so it was pretty aggressive in terms of how quickly it came back,” he said.
‘Honestly, we are incredibly grateful for all the donations so far. We have so many variable costs and our new challenge is that if we can’t make it to June in Singapore, do we have to go to the United States?
“The challenge with the United States is that it is obviously much further away and much more expensive there, around $500,000.”
Max has received his treatment at Queensland Children’s Hospital in Brisbane so far, but Ms Robinson said he has “come through remarkably well”.
‘He was a baby when he was first diagnosed, he was a year and a half old. “He has spent three years in and out of the hospital every other day,” he said.
“It’s quite unfortunate that most mornings he wakes up and says, ‘Do I have to go to the hospital today?’ where most kids would say, ‘Do I have to go to school today?’
“He’s obviously very immunocompromised right now, but he’s trying to do some of the things he likes safely.”
To secure Max (pictured) a spot in the Singapore treatment, they must pay an estimated $280,000 up front.
Mrs Robinson said Max’s brother Jack (pictured together) has been “amazing” in supporting him through cancer treatments.
Just over a week ago, Max and his family went to watch his favorite football team, the Brisbane Broncos, and met the players in the locker room.
‘That was just incredible. “I was very excited about it,” Mrs. Robinson said.
While Max and his seven-year-old brother, Jack, have been partially shielded from the severity of Max’s diagnosis due to their age, Mrs Robinson and her partner, Andy, have been through a “difficult journey”.
“I think we subconsciously take turns seeing who collapses and whoever sticks together and picks things up,” Robinson said.
‘I think last year, the first relapse was probably the one that affected me the most. While in this one it has been the opposite.
‘The most important thing for us is to be a family unit. The more time we can spend together, the better.’
He added that Jack has played an important role in keeping his brother’s spirits up during his treatments.
‘Jack is pretty amazing. h“He was only four years old when Max was first diagnosed, so we didn’t immediately go into detail about what was happening,” Ms Robinson said.
“We never really talked about how there was an opportunity [Max’s treatment] It wasn’t going to work, so when he relapsed again, Jack was pretty confused because he thought it was done.
“He has been quite strong, he is a brother who supports me a lot.”
Max’s treatment (pictured) in Singapore is expected to last between two and three months.
Max’s entire family will travel to Singapore to support him during his cancer treatment (pictured, Max and his father, Andy)
Max’s treatment in Singapore is expected to last between two and three months.
Your entire family will come together to support you during the procedure.
While they wait for a hospital spot in Singapore, they hope to keep Max’s cancer at bay with Australian treatments.